Erica Vladimer, a former IDC staffer, told The Huffington Post this week state Sen. Jeff Klein had “shoved his tongue” in her mouth while they were standing outside a bar, smoking a cigarette. | AP Photo

Anti-IDC coalition calls on Klein to resign

A coalition of women and Independent Democratic Conference challengers are calling on state Sen. Jeff Klein to resign after a former staffer accused him this week of forcibly kissing her outside an Albany bar in 2015.

“Sen. Klein is refusing to listen. He impugns Erica’s character to protect his own — this is not the behavior of a leader and he can certainly no longer remain a lawmaker, he can no longer be trusted to safeguard justice for New Yorkers,” Heather Stewart, an advocate with Empire State Indivisible, said Friday during a press conference on the steps of City Hall.

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Erica Vladimer, a former IDC staffer, told The Huffington Post this week Klein had “shoved his tongue” in her mouth while they were standing outside a bar, smoking a cigarette.

Klein has forcefully denied the allegations and called for an investigation of the alleged event by the Joint Commission on Public Ethics.

Members of the IDC have also banded behind Klein, expressing support and “full confidence” in the senator who leads the IDC — a coalition of eight Democratic senators who caucus with the Republicans, allowing the GOP to retain control of the chamber despite Democrats holding a majority of the seats.

That alliance has come under increasing scrutiny in recent months and several IDC members are facing primary challenges in the upcoming election as progressive groups and national Democrats have accused Klein of enabling Republicans. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has recently pushed to reunify the IDC and mainstream Democrats after special elections later this year.

Jessica Ramos, a former aide to New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio who is running in a Democratic primary against state Sen. Jose Peralta — a member of the IDC — called on Klein to step aside. She also suggested Klein should refrain from using campaign donations to pay lawyers investigating Vladimer’s claim.

“We are standing with her for her bravery and for her truth. We call for an independent investigation, we call for the investigation to be timely, to be quick and to be fair because Erica deserves to be heard and Erica deserves justice,” Ramos said.

State Sen. Diane Savino, a fellow IDC memeber who has been dating Klein for several years, attacked his accusers in a statement.

“The organizer of the rally, True Blue NY, was literally founded to end the IDC, so it’s pretty clear that calls for resignation have more to do with politics than anything else," Savino said in a statement.

A group of eight former Klein staffers — all women — also wrote a letter Friday defending their former boss.

"For those of us who worked for him, Senator Klein always created a safe work environment, valued our opinions and contributions to his office, routinely promoting women into leadership positions, and provided valuable professional experience that has helped us advance our careers," the letter states.

Cuomo has called for an independent investigation into the alleged incident but he stopped short of calling for Klein to step aside on Friday.

“I immediately called for an independent investigation," Cuomo told reporters. "There’s going to be an independent investigation and we should wait to see what that investigation says."

Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan, for his part, has said the upper house has no jurisdiction to conduct an investigation into the claim. Speaking Friday to a business group on Long Island, Flanagan (R-East Northport) called Klein a "good guy."

"I have a very good, strong working relationship with Sen. Klein. He's a good guy," Flanagan said. "We don't always agree. He's a good guy. He's a good solid, strong aggressive leader and he deserves respect. I afford him that. He gives me that in return on behalf of our conference. And I think that is incredibly important."